Tag: Health

I go bananas for bananas! But I really do keep it controlled because it is a high carbohydrate, high sugar fruit, therefore I am careful of how much of it I eat (If you want to read more on carbohydrates and sugar check out this blog post). But, that doesn’t mean it is completely banned from my diet. Bananas have many benefits, including lots of soluble fibre to aid with digestion and potassium that helps skeletal and smooth muscle function.

This weekend I decided to make a buckwheat banana bread sweetened with brown rice syrup. It is an easy recipe that can make Saturday mornings more cheerful and more fun.

This bread can be topped with anything, including almond butter, natural pear jam or just by itself.

This recipe makes about 8 slices, and is great for breakfast, tea, snack, or whatever you want it to be! Don’t be afraid to change the sweetener, you can use honey, maple syrup, coconut sugar… If you keep it healthy, all choices are good choices.

So, what is sugar? Sugar is basically a kind of carbohydrate that is released quickly into your blood to give you energy. But there are many kinds of sugar, and each is processed differently by the body.

It all starts off with glucose which is a monosaccharide and is the main fuel molecule for all living things. Glucose comes from the foods you eat and is used by your body for energy. The key of the matter is to know what kind of sugar to eat and how it will either be good or bad for your health.

To keep things simple, carbohydrates can be distinguished between fast releasing and slow releasing. Each one of these creates a completely different kind of reaction in your body.

Fast releasing carbohydrates:

When we eat food that is processed, has no fibre and is not natural, it will immediately turn into sugar in your body. It will then go directly to your bloodstream and cause a blood sugar imbalance. The insulin in your pancreas will be released out of the blood into the cell. In the short term if you are not very active, the unused energy will be stored as fat. In the long term, you will be hurting your body and be in danger of getting sugar related diseases such as diabetes.

When we eat food that has fibre and protein, the glucose in our bodies does not go into our bloodstream as fast. This means that our blood sugar levels will not spike, and our body will be in balance. Our body will not store so much excess fat and the pancreas will not have to work as hard.

Blood sugar imbalances cause sugar cravings, aggressiveness, palpitations, mood changes, fatigue, dizziness, tiredness, headache, lack of concentration, anxiety, among others. To avoid this, the best is to eat real food that will nurture you and keep you full for longer.

If you are going to eat foods that are fast releasing carbohydrates, be mindful of always pairing it with foods that contain fibre or protein. This way digestion will take longer, and the sugar in your system will take longer to be absorbed, helping you to maintain a steady blood sugar balance.

Remember: Almost all packaged food is processed and has been stripped from it’s fibre and protein. Instead, it has added sugar, preservatives and contains no real nutrients.

Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin, this means our bodies will absorb it better if we take it with fat, oil or protein in the same meal. For example, raw sliced carrots dipped in hummus. The carrots will give you the vitamin, the chickpeas will give you protein and the tahini from the hummus will give you the fat you need to absorb the goodness from the vegetable.

Fat soluble vitamins are stored by the body, this means we cannot eat an excessive amount because they can be toxic in high doses. How much is too much depends on your body, your kind of diet and lifestyle. For example, coffee and tea deplete us from vitamins. A person who drink a lot of this will probably not get an excess, but instead be in danger of having too little vitamins.

Vitamin A is and antioxidant and is very beneficial for our eyesight. Furthermore, it strengthens our immune system, promotes good reproductive health in men and works with iron to build new red blood cells.

Now that you are familiarized with vitamin A, I will give you a few ideas on how to get more of it into your diet.

Oven cooked wild salmon

Real wild salmon is difficult to find, but if you can, it’s the best source of omega 3, omega 6 and vitamin A. If you only find farmed salmon, don’t worry, still take it, but do not over consume it because it has a lot of toxins that will build up in your body. Farmed salmon is recommended to have it no more than once a week.

Recipe:

If you want to enhance the flavours of the salmon, marinate it at least 5 hours before (can even be left overnight in the fridge). Use 2 freshly squeezed lemons, chopped fresh mint leaves, sea salt and 1 sliced lemon which you will place on top of the salmon. I do not use any kind of oil, the salmon is oily enough.

Preheat the oven to 160°C

Take the salmon out of the fridge at least 1 hour before placing in the oven. This will assure your fish is cooked evenly. I usually fold it completely in tin foil, this will prevent the salmon from drying.

Place in the oven during 20-25 minutes, until the salmon looks fully cooked.

Be sure to buy organic free range eggs. They have much more nutritional content, more vitamin A, omega 3 and vitamin E.

Recipe:

To make my life easy, I poach the eggs in little poaches (completely biodegradable) that I then discard. I don’t have to use vinegar or anything else to keep the egg in place. To have them fully cooked, but still a tender yolk, it takes between 4-5 minutes.

Toast 1 slice of whole-wheat bread. Avoid the ones in supermarkets, instead go to your local bakery and buy fresh bread with no additives and no sugar.

Slice ½ hass avocado and spread it on the toast. Add sea salt if wanted.

Make your own sprouts, or buy sprouts from your local organic store. Put some on the toast.

Serve the egg on top of the toast and enjoy!

This breakfast is a great source of vitamin A, soluble fibre, and monounsaturated fat (you may know it better as good fat!).

Organic full fat greek yogurt with fruit

Sometimes it is better to eat full fat yogurt because the food industry uses a lot of sugar in fat free products to improve the flavour (and not even a good kind of sugar!). Always buy good quality greek yogurt that has at least 9g of protein. If it has less than that, it is not truly a greek yogurt.

Mix ½ cup of yogurt with ½ cup of your preffered fruit. If you are trying to cut down on sugar use berries or apples

Who doesn’t love pizza? The weekend is just around the corner and we must start planning a meal to make at home that is fun to make with our friends and family!

But, pizza is not always the best option if you are trying to lose weight, get fitter or are just being mindful on what you eat. That is why I want to share with you a recipe that is high in protein, low in carbs, gluten free and very satisfying!

Last Sunday (Oscar night!), I made two types of pizza, vegan and non-vegan. It’s nice to have a home that holds all options! The base is the same for both, you just need to get creative with the the toppings.

In an earlier post I had mentioned the importance of vitamins and minerals and had promised to give you a few ideas to start you off on a few of these. I decided calcium had to be first because of the relevance it has in our diets and how our bones suffer if we are not mindful of getting enough of it. Remember: The body does not assimilate calcium unless you exercise. Even a 30-minute walk will do the trick.

For a long time, I thought dairy was the best source of calcium available for humans, but recent research has contradicted this belief. First of all, if you think about it we are the only mammals that continue to have dairy throughout most of our life. And as research shows, women’s breast milk is very different to cow’s milk: one is high in glucose, the other is high in protein. Humans need glucose for their brains to develop. Cattle need protein for their bodies to grow rapidly and be able to stand up a few hours after they are born. You can read a more detailed study on the subject of the intake of calcium and milk on this website.

So, what does this mean? Don’t rely solely on cow’s milk to get your calcium needs, instead diversify, look for alternatives. Almonds, broccoli, turnip greens and chia seeds are all great options.

Here I share with you a few easy recipes that can be used in any meal and at any time.

Gomashio: Has 10 more times calcium than milk and is easily absorbed by the body. You can make it at home or buy it at a natural health store near your home.

Roast the sesame seeds, continually move with a spoon to avoid sticking or burning (you have to be careful because they burn easily) and when they disintegrate between your fingertips it means they are fully cooked. In a mortar or food processor mix the salt and sesame seeds and ground. If you are not going to use it immediately, keep in an airtight container in the fridge because it loses its properties.

Uses: It can be used instead of salt, in salads, in porridge. Anywhere really, it tastes delicious.

Mix everything together and put in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. You can can then top it with whatever you want: coconut flakes, blueberries, strawberries, dark chocolate…

Broccoli: It is a great vegetable, it is easily made and can be used in many recipes.

Recipe: Boil water. Put the broccoli in the boiling water for about 1 minute and then take it out. I top it with some homemade or organic store bought hummus and use it as a snack or part of my lunch.

The most important thing about a healthy diet is to diversify. Don’t eat always the same food, don’t be afraid to try new foods, colour your plate with healthy foods and enjoy what you eat. The rest will start coming naturally to you.

Last weekend we had some friends over and I cooked all kinds of goodies, including millet bread, sweet buckwheat bread, savoury buckwheat bread, pancakes, scones and a bunch of things more (I love eating!).

My husband loves to have pastries for breakfast on weekends and I am always finding alternatives to these kinds of food so he doesn’t have any processed, sugary treats. Instead, I bake at home with whole meal flours and alternative sweeteners.

Lately he has been into scones, so I’ve decided to make a healthier version for him: no sugar, spelt flour, hemp milk and organic butter (I have not been able to make them without the butter, still need to experiment a bit with this one!)

For the sugar free scones recipe, I made some pear jam, no sugar added. Cooking the pear by itself makes it sweet enough and it is yummy, filling and heart-warming.

The body is a very complex system that is constantly in need of nutrients to survive. This means that we must be on top of the game the whole time: What does my body need to have a good balance of vitamins and minerals? First, it all depends on the amount of physical activity each person has during the day, stress levels, amount of sleep, environment (is it polluted), workplace…

Taking all these into account, each person should determine how they feel and their bodies look: Am I tired, moody and are my nails weak? Those are all ways in which our bodies tell us that we are missing essential micronutrients (vitamins and minerals required by the body to perform correctly), and we should listen to it). This is a very easy way to prevent further problems with our health. It is the way in which we avoid any serious illness and act before a big problem has risen.

There are some people that help themselves through supplements, but we should not rely only on these because there is nothing better than taking our micronutrients directly from the source. NOTE: If you feel unwell, it is important for you to visit the doctor and check if you have any insufficiencies. Sometimes diet alone is not enough.

Here are some key foods and their vitamins for you to include in your diet and your recipes: